When Schuylkill Valley won a division title in 2002 Chris Gallo remembers being ecstatic about it.

"We felt we finally had accomplished something," said the Panthers coach. "It was a huge highlight."

At the time, considering that the Panthers hadn't won one in three decades and had just two in their history, it was a big deal.

Now, looking back on Gallo's 15 seasons running the program, that was just the start.

The decade that followed saw Schuylkill Valley win five more division titles. This season the Panthers added a historic playoff win over Reading High and a trip to the county final - the school's first in 37 years.

All of that success made it all the harder for Gallo to resign as boys basketball coach Wednesday. Even as he did he had second - and third - thoughts about the decision.

"Even going to school (that morning) I wasn't 100 percent sure I was done," he said.

Gallo, 39, said he is stepping down because of family reasons and because the job and its accompanying duties have taken their toll.

"Family is the biggest part of it," said Gallo, who has two young children. "But it's (also) everything that goes along with (coaching)."

Gallo is president of the Berks coaches organization. He runs the annual all-star game, the postseason banquet, a summer league and summer camps.

"To do this job correctly, it's a lot of time, and it is a lot of effort, and it puts a lot of strain on other people," Gallo said. "On your assistants, and mostly on your family.

"It starts to wear on you. I really thought I was a lifer. I expected to be here 30 years when I took the job. I didn't know how I was going to deal with (raising) the kids, but I thought I was going to make it work and that my love for this game would just carry me through. It's just a lot."

Gallo goes out on top. He was named Coach of the Year by his peers for a second straight year after a 19-8 season that saw the Panthers reach the District 3-AA quarterfinals before falling to Berks Catholic for a third time.

He leaves with a 203-167 record, by far the most wins ever by a Schuylkill Valley boys basketball coach.

When he took over in 1997 the program had not experienced a winning season in 20 years.

It took him time to turn things around but by his fourth season he had a winning record and in his fifth a division title.

His resume includes two seasons as an assistant at both Wilson and Muhlenberg, his alma mater, where he played for his dad, Roger Gallo, on a pair of Muhlenberg teams that reached district finals.

His dad was part of his coaching staff for the past 10 seasons.

Gallo said last month's 79-72 win over Reading will remain a highlight of his coaching tenure, in large part because of the reaction it elicited. He received hundreds of emails, phone calls and text messages in the hours that followed.

"The best thing about these last couple weeks was the outpouring of support from friends, family, coaches and former players," he said. "The amount of hugs the last few weeks has been unreal, and tears."

Gallo said he is not resigning to take another job and dismissed any notion that he has plans to seek the job at Muhlenberg, which opened last week when Reggie Weiss resigned.

He did not close the door on a return to coaching.

"I'll see how I feel about getting back into it," he said. "I would be surprised if I don't want to do it again."